Automatic poultry feeder and exerciser.



No. 883,717. 7 PATENTED OCT. 16, 1906.

. H. A. HANNUM.

AUTOMATIG POULTRY FEEDER AND EXERCISER.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 29. 1906.

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PAT NTED OUT. 16, 1905.

H. A. HANNUM. AUTOMATIC POULTRY FEEDER AND BXBRGISBR.

APPLICATION I'ILED JAN. 29. 19.08.

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PATENTED OCT. 16, 1906.

. A. HANNUM. AUTOMATIC POULTRYFEEDER AND EXERGISER.

AiPLIGATION FILED JAN. 29.1906.

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HENRY A. HANNUM, OF

PATENT OFFICE.

OAZENOVIA, NEW YORK.

AUTOMATIC POULTRY FEEDER AND EXER'CI-S-EHG Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct, I6, I906.

Continuation of application Serial No. 271,571, filed July 28,-1906r This application filed January 29, 1906. Serial No. 298,366.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY A. HANNUM, of

Oazenovia, in the county of Madison, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Automatic Poultry Feeders and Exercisers, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

The ob'ect of this invention is to provide an apparatus for feeding fowls auto matic. ally, which apparatus shall deliver the feed at a plurality of places situated remote from each other and have the delivery normally closed to obviate waste of feed and shall require the fowls to travel from place to place to actuate the feeding devices so as to deliver a predetermined amount of feed from the remote feeding device, while the other feeding device is automatically closed and prepared to deliver therefrom a measured quantity of feed by subsequent action'of the fowl, thus causing the fowls to receive the necessary eX- ercise and maintaining the feeding devices sists of grain.

closed during the travel of the fowls back and forth between the feeding devices or when the fowls are at rest. I

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of an apparatus embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view on the line X X in Fig. 1. Figs. 3 and 4 are enlarged longitudinal sectional views of the bottom portions of the two feed-hoppers. Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical transverse section of one of the feed-hoppers. Fig. 6 is an enlarged front view of the bottom portion of one of the feed-hoppers. Fig. 7 is a horizontal sectional view of the delivery portion of the hopper. Fig. 8 is an elevation illustrating a modification of my invention, and Figs. 9 and 10 are enlarged vertical sections of said modification.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

A A represent parts of the walls of a henhouse or inclosure for keeping fowls in confinement.

Band B designate feed-hoppers which are placed at suitable elevation and remote from each other. Each of said hoppers is provided with a port a, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, for the outlet of the feed, which usually con- Directly under this port is a gate 1), which is provided with an opening b and is supported on a subjacent stationary board 0, upon which the said gate isadapted to slide longitudinally.

The board 0 is provided with an a erture c, which is located at a suitable distance from the port a to allow the imperforate ortion of the gate 6 to close the bottom of the port a while the gate is moved to a position to cause the opening I) to register with the aperture 0. Said arrangement of thegate is essential, inasmuch as it allows only a predetermined quantity of feed to be delivered at a time from the hopper. Said limiting of the delivery of the feed is due to the imperforate portion of the stationary bottom board 0 closing the bottomof the opening I) of the gate when in position to allow feed to pass through the port a of the hopper into said opening of the gate. The gate is thus charged with a measured quantity of feed, which is retained therein by the imperforate portion of the bottom board 0 until the gate is moved to a position to cause its opening I) to register with the aperture 0 in the bottom board, and thus allow the feed to escape through the aperture 0 and drop to the floor A. In the meantime the port a of the hopper is closed by the imperforate portion of the gate.

To allow the delivery of the feed to be regulated according to the number of fowls to be fed, a suitable gage is adjustably applied to the port a, which gage I prefer to form of a plate d, placedupon theupper side of the bottom of the hopper in a position to allow it to be moved to cover more or less of the port or to uncover it entirely, as may be desired. A screw-e, passing through a slot 6 in the plate and into the bottom of the hopper, serves to fasten the said gage in its desired position.

frepresents a brush or suitable sweeper which is attached to the gage d and brushes the top of the gate 1) to prevent its becoming tween the forward edge of the port a and rear edge of the opening 6' during the forward movement of the gate.

0 represents a device designed to scatter the feed delivered from the hopper, and consists, referably, of a cone formed from sheet meta or other suitable material and suspended from the bottom of the hopper to support the cone nearly or exactly central under the feed-discharge aperture 0?, so as to cause the descending. feed to 'drop onto the clogged by some of the feed being caught besloping sides of said cone and become distributed on the floor A.

L and L represent two levers, which are located, respectively, under the hoppers B B and are pivoted at one end to a suitable support P, secured to the floor A. The free ends of said levers are connected to theends of a wire or chain or stout cord h, which passes over pulleys g g, hung on the hoppers B B, and is suitably attached to lugs h h on the gates b b of said hoppers. Said wire orits equivalent is of a length to cause one of the levers L L to be raised toan inclined position When the other of said levers is depressed.

.i '5 denote staples which are attached to the hopper and receivethrough them the wire h, and thereby serve to guide the gates b b and also form stops'for limiting the movements of the gates to their operative positions. The staples allow 'free movement of the wire and gates, which latter ride freely on the bottom board 0 and'are not restricted by guide-cleats, which are liable to swell and pinch the edges of the gates.

In depressing one of the aforesaid levers it causes the wire it or its equivalent to move the gate 1) of the remote hopper to a position to allow the feed to escape from said gate and drop through the aperture 0 of the bottom board a to the floor A. At the same time the gate 1) of the hopper nearest to the depressed lever is drawn back to a position to allow the opening I) of said gate to be filled with feed passing from the hopper through the port a thereof. Said gate is thus charged with feed preparatory to a reverse movement of the gate to its delivery position by the depression of the lever at the remote hopper. The escaping feed drops onto the cone O, which scatters the feed upon the floor. The dropping of the feed upon the cone produces a sound which allures the fowls to the scatteredfeed, and after consuming the greater portion thereof the fowls instinctively step on the elevated end of the lever to survey the floor for remnants of feed. Assuming that the fowl has stepped on the lever L, as represented in Fig. 1 of the drawings, the weight of said fowl depresses said lever, and thus causes the wire h or its equivalent to draw the empty gate 1) of the overhead hopper B back to a position to receive another charge of feed from the hopper. At the same time the wire it or its equivalent draws the gate 1) of the other hopper B to a position to allow the charge of feed carried in said gate to escape and drop to the cone C and thence to the floor. The fowls are thereby attracted and induced to run from the place under the hopper B to the feed scattered under the hopper B, Where the fowls eventually step on the lever L, and thus cause the wire it to draw the gate 1) of the hopper B to a position to receive another charge of feed and at the same time draw the gate 1) of the other hopper B to a position to deliver its charge of feed to the floor under the latter hopper. In this manner the feed is delivered alternately under the hoppers, which are situated remote from each other, and consequently cause the fowls to receive the necessary exercise by running to and from the hoppers. I preferably arrange under each of said hoppers a compartment D, erected on the floor A and of a height and in position in relation to the cone C to allow part of the feed to drop into the compartment. Said compartment has one of its walls D extending from the pivoted end of the lever along the side thereof and terminated near the free end of the lever to leave thereat an entrance 0 to the interior of the compartment, which is closed at the opposite end by a Wall D extending from the pivoted end of the lever to the wall A, to which the hopper is attached, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. The walls of the compartment D are composed of coarse wire-netting or other open-work structure to allow the fowls to observe the feed dropped into the compartment, and thus entice the fowls to seek the entrance 0. In doing this the fowls instinctively step onto the elevated end of the lever, and thus start the discharge of feed from the remote hopper to the floor in the manner hereinbefore described.

It will be observed that the herein-de scribed apparatus is normally at rest, and no feed is discharged from the hoppers until the fowls seek the feed upon the floor or ground. Consequently there is no waste of feed; The feed is withheld until the fowls run from hopper to hopper and operate the levers L L, in which operation the fowls receive the required exercise.

The essential feature of the invention is the plurality of feeding devices being situated remote from each other and each provided with a gate for discharging the feed in measured quantities and normally closed and means operative by the fowls and connected with the gate of the remote feeding device to open said gate.

I do not limit myself to the use of a single Wire h extending from lever to lever, inasmuch as two wires 77/2 71 may be used, each of which wires is connected at one end to one of the levers and runs over a pulley Z, suitably secured to the bottom plate 0 of the hopper, located near said lever, and passes thence to the gate b of the remote hopper and is attached to said gate, as shown in Fig. 8 of the drawings. The gate of the hop er is thus drawn forward to its open or feet -delivering position by the depression of the lever at the remote hopper. In this case the gate is restored to its closed position either by means of a spring 8, interposed between the front of the gate and a block 11, attached to the hopper, as shown in Fig. 10 of the drawings, or

by means of a weight 8, attached to the free end of a cord t, which passesover a pulley suitably supported on the rear of the hopper and thence to the rear of the gate to which it is attached, as shown in Figs. 8 and 9 of the drawings.

What I claim is- 1. An automatic poultry feeder and exerciser comprising a plurality of feeding devices situated remote from each other and each provided with a gate for delivering the feed in measured quantities and normally closed, and means operative by the fowls and connected with the gate of the remote feeding device to open said gate.

2. An automatic poultry feeder and exerciser consisting of a plurality of feed-hoppers situated remote from each other and each provided with a discharge-gate, a wire connecting the gates of the hoppers to open one while closing the other, and means operative ,by the fowls and connected to said wire' to open the gate of the remote hopper as set forth.

3. An automatic oultry feeder and exerciser comprising fee -hoppers located remote from each other and provided with dischargeports in their bottoms, gates under said bottoms for controlling the discharges of feed, a wire connectin the gates, compartments disposed under t e hoppers to receive portions of the discharged feed, and levers connected to opposite ends of said wire and disposed across the entrances to the compartments and adapted to be operated by the weight of the fowls stepping on the levers.

4. An automatic poultry feeder and exerciser comprising two feed-hoppers located remote from each other and provided with discharge-ports in their bottoms, gates under said bottoms controlling the discharges of feed,'means disposed beneath the hoppers for scattering the discharged feed, a wire connecting the gates, compartments disposed to receive portions of the feed from the scattering means and formed with screens exposing to view the interiors of the compartments, and levers connected to opposite ends of the wire and disposed across the entrances to the compartments and ada ted to be operated by the weight of the fow s stepping on the levers.

5. An automatic poultry feeder and exerciser comprising two feed-hoppers located remote from each other and provided with dischar e-ports in their bottoms, gates under sai bottoms controlling the discharges of feed, gages adjustably connected to the hoppers for varying the discharge of the feed according to the number of fowls tobe fed, means disposed beneath the hoppers for scattering the discharged feed, compartments of open-work disposed below the said scattering means to receive part of the scattered feed, a wire connecting the gates, and levers connected to opposite ends of the wire and disposed across the entrances of the aforesaid compartments and adapted to be operated by the weight of the fowls stepping on said levers.

6. The combination with the feed-hopper provided with a discharge-port in its bottom, a gate supported movably imder said bottom, a gage secured to the hopper adjusts ably over the port thereof, and a brush attached to the gage and disposed in the aforesaid port as set forth.

HENRY A. HANNUM.

Witnesses:

J. J. LAASS, L. H. FULMER. 

